Kate Forsyth is the internationally-bestselling and award-winning author of more than 30 books, translated into 15 languages. She has been named one of Australia's Favourite 20 Novelists.

I have wanted to be a writer for as long as I can remember. I was writing stories and poems from the time I could first hold a pencil and I wrote my first novel when I was only seven.

I think it's because I have always loved books so much. It doesn't matter what is happening to you in your own life – books are a magical gateway to other worlds and other times. For a while you walk around in someone else's shoes, and you travel their journey of discovery with them. For me, books are a true kind of magic.

When I first began dreaming of being a writer, I imagined myself writing the sort of books I so loved to read. Books that were filled with wonder and adventure, mystery and magic. As a child, I always thought I would write for other children, and now my dreams have come true and I write for both children and adults.